NHTSA Complaint #10907069 — 2011 KIA OPTIMA

I HAD DROVE THIS CAR FOR A YEAR WITH NO MINOR OR MAJOR PROBLEMS WHAT SO EVER JUST REGULARLY PERFORMED MAINTENCE AND UP KEEP. NEVER ONCE SEEING A ENGINE OR OIL LIGHT. HOWEVER IN MARCH OF 2016 WITH NO WARNING OR ANYTHING MY CAR STARTED MAKING THIS HORRIBLE 'KNOCKING NOISE' WHICH WAS MINIMAL AT FIRST AND GREW LOUDER AS I ACCELERATED. AND THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AFTER THAT AND HAS NEVER GONE OFF. THIS IMMEDIATELY RAISED CONCERNS FOR ME BUT DID NOT NO THE CAUSE, I PULLED OVER TO A MECHANIC SHOP AND AFTER JUST 30 SECONDS OF HEARING MY CAR START THEN DIE WITH THE HORRIBLE KNOCKING NOISE. I WAS TOLD I WOULD MORE THAN LIKELY NEED A WHOLE NEW ENGINE. HIS EXACT WORDS TO ME ARE 'SOUNDS LIKE YOU GOT A ROD KNOCK'. AND HE CHECKED MY OIL TO SEE IF ANY WAS IN THE ENGINE WHICH IT WAS AND ASKED ME ABOUT VEHICLE HISTORY. FROM MY UNDERSTANDING AND THE 3 SEPARATE MECHANICS I HAVE SPOKE WITH SAYS THERE WOULD BE NO REASON FOR A 2011 THAT HAS 90K MILES TO HAVE AN INTERNAL ENGINE PROBLEM. AT THE TIME I IMMEDIATELY CALLED KIA AND THEY SAY IT WON'T BE COVERED WHICH PUTS ME AT A LOST FOR WORDS AND HAVING ME TRY TO PREPARE TO BUY A ENGINE WHICH COST WILL EQUAL INTO THE $5,000 PRICE RANGE. THIS WAS NOT A REALISTIC OPTION FOR ME AND FORCED ME TO SEEK OTHER OPTIONS. AND COME TO FIND OUT HYUNDAI SHARES THE SAME ENGINE IN MY 2011 KIA OPTIMA AND THEY RECALLED THEIRS. BUT KIA IS CALLING THIS A MECHANISM DEFECT NOW, AND STILL FIGHTING CLAIMS. IT JUST BAFFLES ME IF HYUNDAI IS THE PARENT COMAPNY OF KIA AND THEY RE CALLED THE ENGINE, WHY IS KIA FIGHTING EVERYONE SO HARD ON THESE CLAIMS... I JUST DON'T BELIEVE ALL US OPTIMA OWNERS IN AMERICA DON'T T KNOW HOW TO GET OIL CHANGES, AND THATS WHAT KIA WANTS US TO BELIEVE.